A new challenging NES-inspired adventure game

Use the magic staff to solve puzzles and defeat enemies

Explore a large interconnected map in true ‘Metroidvania’ style

Use your magic staff and progress through a large interconnected world where you’ll solve puzzles, fight enemies and defeat bosses in order to help free the land of Alwa. Explore and uncover the secrets by using your platforming skills in this challenging and charming 8-bit adventure game.

Alwa’s Awakening is a game that tries to stay as close as possible to the authentic 8-bit look with sweet pixel art, a soundtrack filled with catchy chiptunes and so much charm it’ll bring you right back to the NES era. With easy to understand controls the game is easy to learn but tough to master, just like how games were in the old days!

A new challenging NES-inspired adventure game

Use the magic staff to solve puzzles and defeat enemies

Find and unlock upgrades to your items and abilities

Explore a large interconnected map in true ‘Metroidvania’ style

Listen to a completely new 8-bit soundtrack with over 25 new original tracks

An evil power plagues the people and it’s up to you to set them free. You must travel to the land of Alwa and help the people living there to awaken from their nightmare… You are Zoe, a normal everyday girl who just happens to like to play video games. One late night when she’s just enjoying her favourite game she suddenly finds herself dozing off and when she awakens she has been brought into the game and into the land of Alwa.

The story of how Alwa’s Awakening came to be started in the autumn of 2014. After spending an evening at a friend’s house playing NES Mikael started dreaming big about making his own game. Problem was – he had never made a game before. He realized he had to think this through and find people that could help him and step one was to get his thoughts down in a game design document. He started and within a few days there was a 14-page document detailing pretty much everything.

The plan was to first attract a pixel artist so the game mockup would look good. He sent the document to Alexander; a pixel artist he had heard of that he knew was really talented. Alex liked what he saw and said yes to do the graphics for the game. Great success! With a design document and a pixel artist on board it wasn’t that hard to convince Robert Kreese to do the music for the game. Mikael had known Kreese for a couple of years since they both worked as organizers on RSM, which is the largest Retro Convention in Scandinavia. Now the team was almost complete! He just had to find someone to actually program the game…

If you don’t really know that many programmers where do you turn? Twitter of course! A tweet was sent in both Swedish and English and by asking some prominent retro personalities it was reached by quite many. A few hours and many tweets later a few people had show interest but the most promising and interesting person was sitting just a few desks away. Mikael’s co-worker Kevin jumped on board the project and suddenly we had a whole team!

We started working on Alwa’s Awakening for real in October 2014 and the plan is to make a action/adventure game inspired by old school classic such as Battle of Olympus and Solstice but also new games like Battle Kid and Trine. Make sure you follow us on Twitter for delicious pixel updates.

Alexander Berggren

Pixel Artist

Our pixel magician who spends hours after hours putting all the pixels together into cool art. Lives in the rainy city of Borås and sports a wicked beard and old man’s cap which makes him look smart and sophisticated. Loves Sega games because Sega does what Nintendon’t.

Robert Kreese

Music Artist

Likes retro games, retro music and retro graphics. Organizer of Retrospelsmässan, the largest retro convention in Scandinavia. Kreese likes things that go blip and blop and therefore composes the soundtrack to the game. Probably the nicest person you’ll ever meet.

Kevin Andersson

Programmer

Kevin is our programmer and when he‘s not at his job making games he’s at home making games. Young multi-talented guy with a lot of different skills. Has such a thick accent that no one ever understands him. For some weird reason considers himself extremely handsome.

Mikael Forslind

Game Designer

The one on the team who decided to make this game. Also the only one on the team who’s never made a real game before. Think he’s the game designer but in fact only does what Kevin wants him to. Secretly dreams of being able to speed run Battle Kid 2 and Dark Souls.